Teresa went quiet. She still owed Jonathan 3.2 million dollars—how could she just avoid contacting him?

“Hannah, just mind your own business and take care of yourself and your baby. Leave me alone,” Teresa replied.

“I know I shouldn’t meddle so much, but I’m just trying to look out for you. All this nagging is because I care,” Jennifer insisted.

“Alright, alright, if that’s all, I’m hanging up,” Teresa said, clearly tired of the conversation.

“Wait,” Jennifer stopped her. “You’re really not coming with me for the abortion?”

“Figure it out yourself. If you want to get rid of it, just go on your own. I’m heading to Shaville for work—I’m really busy.”

“Another business trip? What about Mike and Isabel? Are you taking them with you?”

“Evelyn picked up Isabel, and I asked Miriam to look after Mike.”

“Why do you always ask Miriam for help? I’m off work these days—why not let me help?”

“No need. Mike doesn’t like being with you; he prefers his godmother. And you should check in on Cheryl more. As the eldest sister-in-law, you should look after her—she’s a new mom and doesn’t have much experience.”

Jennifer muttered to herself, “Guess I’ll just go get the abortion on my own when I have time.”

“Whatever.” Teresa hung up. It was obvious Jennifer only cared about her abortion and didn’t care at all about how Cheryl was coping with the baby. If Teresa hadn’t divorced Jonathan, it would make sense for her to worry about Cheryl. Anyway, she’d already given Cheryl over 200,000 dollars. She guessed it should be enough for Cheryl to get by for a couple of years.

The next morning, Teresa waited for Jonathan outside his villa. They were set to fly to Shaville. Jonathan showed up forty minutes late. He got in the car and explained, “Sorry, Werner and I had a meal together. It took longer than I thought.”

“No worries. We’ve still got plenty of time before the flight,” Teresa replied.

Jonathan glanced at her, his look carrying a hint of something else. Teresa caught his gaze and raised an eyebrow. “Why are you looking at me like that? Is my makeup messed up?”

Jonathan shook his head, a faint smile on his lips. “My uncle was asking about why we got divorced. He wondered if it was because we couldn’t have kids.”

Teresa tensed up instantly. “So? What did you tell him?”

Jonathan picked up a magazine and pretended to read. “I said it wasn’t my problem.”

“You!” Teresa snatched the magazine from his hands. “If it’s not you, then it must be me. So now your family’s going to think it’s my fault?”

Jonathan grinned. “Why are you so worked up? I wasn’t finished. I told him I’m always away on business, so we didn’t want kids because I wouldn’t have time to take care of them.”

Only then did Teresa’s expression soften a little. Jonathan rubbed his forehead, his eyes lingering on Teresa with a hint of regret. “Looking back now, do you realize how many chances you took away from me to have a child?”

“How did I ever take that away from you?”

“How many times did you take contraceptive pills?”

Teresa went silent. That stifling feeling of wanting to speak but not being able to tell the truth—she felt it deeply right now. She had to bite down hard just to keep her real thoughts from slipping out.

She changed the subject. “We’ve been divorced for ages, and your family still has the time to gossip about us? They must be really bored.”

“My uncle knows I haven’t really moved on. He hopes we’ll get back together. He means well.”

Teresa pressed her lips together and said nothing. Jonathan suddenly snapped his magazine shut and glanced at her stomach through the pale green dress she wore. “If the pregnancy is still early, is it possible that it wouldn’t show up on a test?”